The Oklahoma Department of Commerce has scheduled a public hearing on the Community Services Block Grant state plan and application at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 19 at the Oklahoma Association of Community Action Agencies, 605 Centennial Blvd. in Edmond.

Even the most prepared among us probably don’t think about the importance of energy assurance ahead of a disaster. We should, and thankfully others are way ahead of us, here in Oklahoma, planning for safeguarded supplies of necessary forms of energy.

In February, Chaparral Energy, an independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company and the third-largest oil producer in Oklahoma, announced it would cut 121 positions, the latest in a string of victims from the dropping oil prices. Oklahoma isn’t alone. According to Forbes, in January 2015, at least 31,000 cuts were announced by Halliburton, Shell and others on a national level, meaning many former employees earning top wages were left seeking new jobs.